PM Modi confident Prambanan Temple pilgrim numbers will rise after restoration

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi believes the number of pilgrims and tourists visiting Prambanan Temple will increase, especially after the restoration work resulting from an Indonesia-India collaboration is completed. At Prambanan Temple in the Special Region of Yogyakarta on Wednesday, PM Modi together with President Prabowo Subianto launched the India-Indonesia collaboration for the conservation and restoration of Prambanan Temple. “In Yogyakarta, we are commencing restoration work on this magnificent temple complex. This site is a UNESCO world heritage site. I am confident that through this joint restoration, the number of tourists and pilgrims from India will increase significantly in the times to come,” PM Modi said during a joint press statement with President Prabowo at Prambanan Temple. Prambanan Temple, which is the largest Hindu temple complex in Indonesia and the second largest in Southeast Asia after Angkor Wat, is, for Modi, a shared cultural heritage that has been preserved for more than 1,200 years. “I would like to express my gratitude to all the people of Indonesia who have safeguarded this cultural heritage, as well as to the government and all the managers who have contributed to this effort,” Modi said. The Indian PM then shared the magical feeling he experienced while praying at Prambanan Temple. “Whether I am on a pilgrimage to Kailash Mansarovar in Lhasa or at this sacred temple complex in Indonesia, I can hear the holy chants of Mahamrityunjaya and Om Namah Shivaya resonating. This is the shared cultural heritage we possess,” Modi stated. Therefore, the Indian PM pledged to return to Indonesia to jointly inaugurate the results of the Prambanan Temple restoration, which is targeted for completion in 2029. PM Modi is even optimistic the restoration will be finished before then. On the same occasion, President Prabowo welcomed the India-Indonesia collaboration to jointly restore the Prambanan Temple complex. “I welcome the agreement on the conservation and restoration of the Prambanan Temple complex between the Government of the Republic of Indonesia and the Government of the Republic of India,” President Prabowo said. “On behalf of the government and people of Indonesia, I extend my highest gratitude to Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his three-day state visit to Indonesia this time,” the President continued. PM Modi’s visit to Prambanan Temple was part of his state visit to Indonesia from 6 to 8 July 2026. After concluding the event at Prambanan Temple, President Prabowo escorted PM Modi to Yogyakarta International Airport. The Indian presidential aircraft, Air India One, carrying PM Modi, took off from YIA on Wednesday afternoon. In Indonesian airspace, the aircraft was escorted by three Indonesian Air Force fighter jets.